Cero!

"Conqueror's Haki?!"

Kizaru stared at Ulquiorra, his eyes wide with shock.

It was one thing for an unknown pirate to possess Admiral-level strength, but he could actually use Conqueror's Haki too.

Most importantly, this ice-cold fellow seemed to be nothing more than a subordinate!

Someone with Conqueror's Haki was merely a subordinate? In the New World, someone like that would at least be a first mate under one of the Four Emperors or the captain of a formidable pirate crew!

He increasingly felt that an unseen hand was manipulating everything behind the scenes!

Kizaru stared at Ulquiorra and asked gravely, "Who exactly are you, and what is your objective?"

At that, Ulquiorra made a rare reply. "I am the Fourth Forbidden Blade of the Dark Forbidden Legion-Ulquiorra Cifer."

"The Dark Forbidden Legion?" A trace of confusion appeared in Kizaru's eyes. "Is that your organization? You're not pirates?"

Having always assumed that Ye Yang and the others were pirates, he was somewhat surprised.

Hearing Kizaru's words, Ye Yang scoffed and said mockingly, "When did we ever say we were pirates?"

Neither annoyed nor angry, Kizaru looked at Ye Yang and said mildly, "An unknown organization with an Admiral-level member. It seems I'll need to arrest you and interrogate you."

With that, he pressed his palms together, then drew them apart, forming a sword from particles of light.

"Ama no Murakumo."

Then his entire body shone. With a golden flash, he appeared before Ulquiorra in the blink of an eye and slashed down viciously with Ama no Murakumo!

Ulquiorra's expression remained calm as he raised and swung his moonlight sword, meeting Kizaru's descending Ama no Murakumo.

Clang!

A sound like real metal clashing rang out. The swords in their hands collided, sending an invisible ring of air surging outward.

Immediately afterward, Kizaru freed one hand and extended his index finger. Light flickered at his fingertip, and with a sharp whistle, a laser shot toward Ulquiorra.

They were less than a meter apart. In less than a few hundredths of a second, the laser was already in front of Ulquiorra, about to strike him.

Yet in the next instant, Ulquiorra's gaze sharpened slightly, and he suddenly vanished.

When he reappeared, he was already behind Kizaru. With his index finger pressed against Kizaru's back over his heart, he spoke impassively.

"Cero."

Boom! Boom!

A dark green flash pierced through Kizaru's chest and slammed into the ground, blasting yet another enormous crater into it.

Wind surged once more, and dust filled the air.

Their battle had lasted only a few exchanges, yet their surroundings were already riddled with craters. Rocks of all sizes littered the ground, making it look like a field of ruins.

Standing behind Kizaru, Ulquiorra frowned. His Cero had not felt as though it had struck anything solid. It was like hitting air, without any sense of substance at all.

Moreover, not a drop of blood flowed from the hole his Cero had blasted clean through Kizaru's body.

He had never seen anything like this before. It was extremely strange.

"Hm?"

Ulquiorra frowned again. Before him, Kizaru's body suddenly dissolved into particles of light and drifted away, reforming a short distance opposite him. The hole in his chest had already disappeared.

Ulquiorra turned a puzzled gaze toward Ye Yang, a question in his eyes.

Noticing his gaze, Ye Yang smiled slightly and explained, "That's one of this world's abilities: the elemental transformation of Logia users. It grants immunity to ordinary physical and energy attacks. You have to use Armament Haki to hit him, so it's understandable that your Cero didn't work."

"Oh." Ulquiorra nodded. Although he did not quite understand, he had grasped the fact that ordinary attacks could not hurt Kizaru.

"That was close, very close." A short distance across from him, Kizaru patted his chest, still shaken. Deep wariness filled his eyes as he looked at Ulquiorra. "You really are terrifying, young man. So strong. I nearly died there."

Even his Observation Haki had failed to track that movement just now. It was as though his opponent had vanished into thin air. Had the other man not been careless and neglected to use Armament Haki, Kizaru would have been gravely wounded, if not killed.

He did not know that Ulquiorra could not use Armament Haki at all, merely assuming that he had underestimated his opponent too much to use it.

Moreover, through their brief exchange, he had gained a rough understanding of Ulquiorra's strength.

He was undoubtedly Admiral-level, and his abilities were so bizarre that he was even harder to deal with than an ordinary Admiral.

Kizaru probably could not handle him alone. If the other man, whose strength remained unknown, joined in as well, the most he could do was stall for time.

"Hm?" Ye Yang suddenly raised an eyebrow and looked toward the sea in some surprise. Three black dots were slowly sailing toward them. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly. "Two Admirals actually came? They really do think highly of me!"

Through his Observation Haki, he could clearly sense that those three little black dots were three warships. Aboard one of them was someone whose presence was no weaker than Kizaru's.

Someone with a presence comparable to Kizaru's was undoubtedly another Admiral.

He had thought the Navy had sent Kizaru alone. He had not expected them to send two Admirals to capture him. It seemed they had come determined to take him in.